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Date: Fri, 9 Mar 2001 19:41:56 -0500
From: "Don Wilhelm"
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] KAT2 ATU Problem
Steve,
There is an 'omission' in the KAT2 manual on page 16 and 17
After you set the KAT2 to CALn mode (CALP on page 17);
You must exit the menu
Then hold the TUNE button.
Might this be your problem?
Congratulations on your progress this far.
73,
Don Wilhelm -Chapel Hill, NC W3FPR home page:
http://www.w3fpr.webprovider.com
QRP-L # 485 K2 SN 0020 mailto: w3fpr at arrl.net
- ----- Original Message -----
From: "Steve Banks"
To:
Sent: Friday, March 09, 2001 6:51 PM
Subject: [Elecraft] KAT2 ATU Problem
> ...
>
> The problem, however, showed up on p.16 (12th step) of the KAT2 manual
when
> I attempted to complete the Bridge Null Adjustment. After pulling up the
> ATU menu with CALn showing, I found that the TUNE function will not
operate
> as the manual directs--that is, by going directly to TUNE from the ATU
CALn
> menu. (TUNE always worked fine before adding the ATU card.)
>
> In essence, I can hold the ANT 1-2 / TUNE button for a LONG time with
> nothing happening, and consequently no way to null the bridge. The system
> simply refuses to TUNE as directed.
>
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Date: Mon, 9 Jul 2001 13:20:28 -0400
From: "Dave Benham"
Subject: [Elecraft] KAT2 problem found
Gary Surrency got back to me on my weird KAT2 behavioral problem. He told
me to pull the SSB board and essentially put the rig back to pre-SSB
condition, then try the ATU. It worked perfectly during the test.
Apparently a very few rigs with Z1 resonators on the SSB board were too far
off frequency and corrupted the auxbus data. Corrupt LCD displays and slow
relay switching when the ATU operates are the classic symptoms, just what I
had. Keep in mind my K2 is #630, so this might not be an issue at all with
recent rigs.
Man, he's good!!
Thanks to those who replied trying to help me. Fortunately it was this
simple. Now I await the replacement resonator.
73,
Dave K8TRF
============== Original Msg
Date: Mon, 9 Jul 2001 10:29:56 -0400
From: "Dave Benham"
Subject: [Elecraft] KAT2 operation questions (long)
I've had the KAT2 in my rig for about a month with Field Day being my only
real operating time. It seemed to work OK on Field Day, but I have some
questions that I can't find the answers to in the manual. I emailed
Elecraft over the weekend and have not heard back yet - perhaps Gary is
enjoying a well deserved long July 4 weekend.
First, in AUTO mode, it usually takes quite a while longer than the 1 - 5
seconds mentioned in the manual for it to find a match the first time on a
band. This may be due to tuning bedsprings vs. tuning an antenna that is
tuned close to the band in use but I thought the AUTO mode was quick and ALT
was the long method used for oddball situations. Does AUTO mode sometimes
take a long time to tune? Sometimes it sounds like a machine gun when it
tunes, and that generally takes less than 5 seconds to complete. Other times
it sounds almost like the tick-tock of a clock, and that generally takes
much longer than 5 seconds to tune. Is this normal?
Second, sometimes it does not return to receive when it is done. It just
stops, shows the SWR reading and hangs. When I press the TUNE button again,
it returns to receive and seems to work fine. This does not seem related to
final SWR. In fact as I play with the K2 right now with a dummy load, 12M
is the only band that returns to receive automatically after tuning. Is
this normal?
Third, the book seems to indicate that it should display the SWR while
tuning, as if the digital readout should be constantly changing as it goes
through its routine. Mine usually does not do that (sometimes it does --
usually when it sounds like a machine gun; when it sounds like a clock, it
doesn't do it). Is that OK?
Fourth, the readout will read, say, "1.0 - .1 Atu" or "6.8 - .1 Atu". Is
the second number supposed to be preceded by a decimal? Is this normal?
I scrolled through the relays and they all click. I also tested each L and
C as mentioned on p. 22 of the KAT2 manual. Using a dummy load, I do not
get small changes in SWR as mentioned - all mine are 1.0 to 1. Maybe I
didn't do the test correctly?
I bought this rig used (#630) and it has an older version chip in it but not
the one that was original to it. It may be 1.06x. I have the I/O kit with
the new 2.0 chip but have not installed it yet.
The only known problem I had when I built this was on p. 16, bottom,
adjusting C55 for 000. When I called Elecraft I was told to get 010 or
lower. My reading floated between 009 and 010. Also, my "known accurate
wattmeter" might be in question -- it's not a QRP wattmeter. Its lowest
scale was 30 watts full scale.
Thanks for your assistance.
Dave K8TRF
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Date: Mon, 9 Jul 2001 13:31:30 -0600
From: "Jerry McCollom W0MC"
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] KAT2 problem found
Hi Dave
> Thanks to those who replied trying to help me. Fortunately it was this
> simple. Now I await the replacement resonator.
I think I may have been one of the first to experience this problem and Gary
helped me figure it out. My solution was to put a small cap across one side
of the SSB resonator to pull it closer to the bus frequency -- in fact, it's
still that way, I never have bothered to request another resonator. Anyway,
you might give it a try until you get your replacement -- I think I used a
5pf or 10pf (I could pop it open and double check if you want).
73,
Jerry
W0MC
(K2#176, K1#779)
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Date: Sun, 30 Dec 2001 16:11:15 -0600
To: "Alva Anderson W5VCJ" , elecraft at mailman.qth.net
From: Tom Hammond =?iso-8859-1?Q?N=D8SS?=
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K2 ATU alignment: stumped
Andy:
>Hope everyone had a great Christmas! I am building the ATU for the K2, and
>all has gone well up to page 16, where we start the alignment. I set the Pwr
>for 5.0, VFO for 7100.00, and have rotated the resistors and C55 several
>times to "loosen them up". However, when I go to CalN (null) adjustment for
>the ATU, the reading is jumping all over the place. It may settle for a
>short time on say 011, but the slightest touch on C55 drives it wild -- and
>some positions never settle down: the reading may jump from 028 to 000 to
>042, ...
Sure does... I just helped a friend last week and saw the same thing...
1) Use 1W...! Easier to get at the null.
2) Hang an ANALOG (e.g. real METER) meter across the REFL line and do the
(at least gross) NULL adjustment using the needle indication from the
meter. Then go back and do some fine tweaking with the digital display, IF
you feel it's necessary.
>Am I missing something somewhere? I have the Errata where it says you may
>get 001 or 002 instead of 000, but when I get near the 000 with say 098, it
>will not stay there. It doesn't seem as if it can be adjusted. The solder
>joints on the FWD/REV pots and C55 look good, and everything has checked out
>to this point. One note: the plug P8/J8 connection is VERY tight, but it
>also passed all checks, as did all the Lx and Cx stuff.
If you have one of the newer KAT2 kits, you will probably NEVER come CLOSE
to seeing 000, 001 OR 002... about the VERY BEST you can hope for is
something in the range of 006 to 012, with 010 or 011 being the NORM
(emphasis added here!).
This does NOT mean you have anything 'out of adjustment' and is mostly the
result of a capacitor value change at C50 and C51 (they were changes from
.01uF to .001uF).
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From: "Jay Rutherford"
To:
Date: Sat, 6 Apr 2002 19:03:19 -0500
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] ATU Troubles
Reply-To: k1uc at adelphia.net
Richard,
After I installed the new upgrade I had HI CUR problems and was about
to tear the ATU apart for troubleshooting. A reset cured the problem. I
was field testing the KIO2 with the new firmware and had to reset once
more along the way. You might try that before pulling the ATU out.
73, Jay
K1UC in Waterbury Center, Vermont, USA
GRID FN34 Email: K1UC at AMSAT.ORG K2#1034
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